Hot journal warning device



Sept. 16, 1958 L. J. VERHUNCE HOT JOURNAL WARNING DEVICE Filed Dec. 19, 1956 m mm M hV W a V J ,m .s 2 M PM L M far/4 0 k.

Unite The present invention relates to a visible warning and signalling device, generally speaking, and has reference in particular to an ignitable fusee and a holder therefor, said holder being such in construction that it is operatively attachable to a journal box or an equivalent source of heat so that when the heat becomes dangerously excessive or abnormal the fusee comes into play as a colored flare and functions as a suitable warning.

The concept has to do with a fusee and an appropriately constructed holder therefor which functions, so long as the fusee is intact, to support the fusee in a nonfunctioning position and manner. When, however, excessive heat is generated within the confines of the journal box it automatically functions, in conjunction with the burning waste, to ignite the fusee. The fusee then burns at one end portion until it is sufiiciently short to drop through a discharge slot in the holder. Dropping along the railway track it will be noticed by an appointed one of the train crew on the rear end of the train. Thus, by having this timely warning the train can be stopped to make an inspection of the damaged journal box.

The concept also involves so constructing and utilizing the ignitable fusee that it may be operatively mounted on and used in conjunction with a brake, that is, a brake shoe. Therefore, if the brake shoe becomes too hot the heat generated will function in the manner stated to bring the fusee into play as a flare.

More explicitly, the invention has to do with a simple hollow cylinder which serves as the holder and which contains the fusee and which has one end closed and the other end open and constructed for attachment to the journal box or brake shoe as the case may be. In the States Pate bottom portion the cylinder has a slot and it is through this slot that the partly consumed fusee drops to descend to the ground to give the intended or desired warning signal, red in case of a damaged journal box and green in. case of a too-hot-to-function brake shoe.

Other objects, features and advantages will become more readily apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the views:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a car wheel, a journal box, and the improved fusee holder.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view with portions in elevation taken approximately on the plane of the vertical line 22 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 3 is a view in section and elevation showing how the invention applies when used in conjunction with a friction-type of brake shoe.

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the holder seen in Fig. 3.

Referring now to the drawing, and particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the car or train wheel is denoted by the numeral 6 and the journal box is denoted as an entity by the numeral 8. The journal box maybe thought of as conventional and as shown in Fig. 2 the wheel axle or journal is denoted at 10 and is cooperable with the bearing 12 in the space 14 which ordinarily contains lubricant and waste (not detailed). The invention is of course in the attachment, that is, the signalling or warning device. As before mentioned this is characterized primarily by a suitably constructed burnable fusee or flare 16. This of customary stick form and it is confined and mounted in the cylindrical holder 18. The latter is closed at the left hand end as at 20 and is open at its end and externally screw-threaded as at 22 where it is, in this manner, adapted to be screwed into a screw-threaded hole 24 provided therefor in the supporting wall, of the journal box, all as brought out in Fig. 2. It is held in place by a lock nut 26. in the bottom there is a discharge slot 2:; through which the fusee or flare is adapted to drop by gravity when it has burned off or up a certain amount. One end portion is therefore held in the non-slotted end portion 30 of the holder the other end portion 32 extends into the space 14. It is held normally in this position by way of a headed pin 34 which passes through a hole in the cylinder and also through the slot and then through a hole in the fusee itself all as illustrated in Fig. 2. Obviously, when the right hand end portion of the fusee catches on fire from excessive heat it results in consuming or burning the fusee up to the point of the pin connection 34. When the consumption reaches this approximate point the weight of the fusee is sufficient so that it then drops down through the slot and is dumped onto the track. in other words, the fusee will burn up to the retaining pin and then drop out on the track where it will be noticed by the train crew on the rear end of the train. This timely warning to the train crew prevents serious damage to the journal and also possible derailment f the train. The same construction can be used on and in conjunction with a brake shoe as shown in Figure 3 and wherein the wheel is denoted at 36 and the brake shoe at 33. Here the fusee is denoted at 4'0 and is adapted to drop through a slot 42 provided therefor in the cylindrical holder or carrier 44. This is the same as the one already described and is therefore closed at one end as at 46 and this end portion 48 supports an end of the fusee as seen in Fig. 2. The other end of the slot is denoted at 50 and at this end of the cylinder there is an upstanding flange $2 with bolt holes 54 whereby the fiange may be bolted in a suitable manner on the brake shoe to cause the heat generated by the over-hot brake shoe to eventually ignite the fusee so that it will operate in the manner already described.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. For use by a member of a train crew in keeping check on a hot journal box, an easy-to-see warning device comprising, in combination, a journal box having a bearing therein and a journal operatively associated with said bearing, said journal box having a wall with a screw threaded hole with an end located in proximity to the bearing in said box, a fusee having one end portion located in said hole and exposed in the space of the journal box adjacent to said bearing, and a holder encasing said fusee, saidholder extending exteriorly of the journal box and at right angles to said wall, said holder having an inner end attached to said wall and registering with said opening, said holder having an outer end which is closed and further being provided on a bottom side with an elongated discharge slot, end portions of said slot terminating inwardly of the respective end portions of said holder,

said fusee being normally intact and encased by the respective end portions of the holder and being in line with the slot, said slot being of a length less than the length of the fusee and of a width to permit the fusee to gravitate downwardly through the slot when a substantial end portion of thefusee has been ignited and consumed to an extent that the fusee, which is then sutficiently short, may gravitate downwardly through said slot.

2. The structure defined in claim 1 and wherein the inner end portion of said holder is screw threaded and said holder thus screw threaded permitting the screw threaded end of the holder to be removably mounted in the screw threaded hole, said fusee having a hole therein adjacent the inner end of the fusee and an adjacent end of said slot, said holder having a hole aligned with the hole in said fusee, and an assembling and retaining pin for the fusee passing through said holes.

Reynolds June 17, 1947 Rodgers June 5, 1951 

